Happy holiday season! It is my favorite time of year and not because of presents (we stopped the gift exchange thing a while back and it has made the holidays so much better, in my opinion). This is the one time of year that I get to bake my little heart out and no one says anything. It’s all about the baking! 

  
 Val hosted Thanksgiving this year, but I got to make desserts. Well, that and bring the cheese since Val knows I have an actual cheesemonger (who is incredible) but I got to bake. This year we went with almond brittle, the infamous chocolate pie, candied pecans and lemon bars.

I’ve tried a few lemon bar recipes and have never been perfectly happy with them. So this year I decided to browse a few recipes then wing it. Apparently this worked because I got high compliments on the lemon bars. Unfortunately I didn’t write down what I did, so here is the recipe as best I can remember it.

Recipe:

Shortbread crust

• 14 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 cups flour 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 

Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor. On a low speed (or dough if your food processor has it) add the butter one tablespoon at a time. Pour into a 13×9 prepared pan (line with foil and grease however you like – butter, spray, etc) and press to form a solid dough. The dough will be very crumbly – that’s fine. If you don’t have a food processor, combine everything into a large bowl and crumble the butter into the flour with your hands. Bake at 325 for about 30 minutes – just until the dough begins to brown.

Lemon Filling

• 3 large eggs, plus one egg yolk
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• Pinch salt
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2/3 cup lemon juice (3-4 lemons)
• Zest of all the lemons used to make the juice

Mix the eggs, sugar, salt and flour until smooth. Add lemon juice and zest, mix to combine.  Pour over the cooked shortbread crust and bake 20-25 minutes and bake at 350 just until the filling sets. 

Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Dust with confectioners sugar and cut into squares. 

For years I’ve said teacher look forward to the holiday breaks more than the kids. This year is proving no different. While I’m not as anxious to have a short break as I have been in the past, the thought of a few days of baking, eating and actually being home to do stuff is a delightful thought. 

I’ve wanted to cook lately, but the schedule gods have conspired against me. But over the last few weeks I did manage to make some pretty great cheddar chive biscuits and a nice pasta. 

  
The biscuits were purely an indulgence. We still had cheddar from my Mac and cheese experiment and I had some chives in the fridge, so what better way to start a Sunday morning than with biscuits. 

  
The pasta was to be fancier and with more vegetables, but I didn’t make it to the grocery store after work one day, so I improvised. Carrots make a great addition to pasta, and a made a version of a beurre blanc sauce (shallot, thyme, vinegar, wine and lots of butter). It worked. It worked a little too well and I didn’t have leftovers for lunch the next day. 

  
On the pet front, Gracie is her usual self, as are Leia and Tigger. Leia has been more assertive lately, which is fun to watch when she decides she wants Tigger’s spot. Jessie is having a few more “old lady days” (she is 13 so she’s allowed) and while I’m generally not worried, I am keeping an eye on her. Food is the big issue right now – she isn’t eating as much as I think she should – but in general she’s in good shape. Our walks are shorter some days, but at least she still wants to go out. 

It has been a little while since I’ve sat down to post. Life got a bit crazy for a bit, mostly of my own doing, but I think I have it sorted out now.

  
Before the school year started I had applied for a job in Tallahassee – it came across in my email and looked like something that would be a great match. Thinking nothing would come of it, I applied. Turns out, I got an interview, then a second inte view. After that second interview, I knew I would be a little sad no matter what happened. I didn’t get job and it kind of sucked because I know I could do it and it would be challenging and interesting. It’s nice because I like where I am and what I do. What I learned is that I am really knowledgable about my field and can talk with very important people about it. They may have different philosophies and priorities than I do (hence I’m staying where I am right now) but I am perfectly capable of being part of the big picture in education. The question now is, do I want to go for more jobs like that, which would require moving, or just work on saving my little corner of the education world? I haven’t answered that question yet, but, as always, I’ll keep my eyes open and see what is out there. 

There might be a small change at work too – I may end up teaching an actual history class in addition to my regular duties. Maybe. I haven’t said yes yet, but it would be fun. I just don’t want to burn myself out and spend all of my time at work, so I’m still thinking about it.

  
With all that going on, I haven’t experimented in the kitchen much. I did make a new risotto this week – leek and carrot. I found the recipe in my NY Times app and simplified it. I cut it in half, use part aborro rice and part farro (I ran out of rice) and used an herbed salt in place of the salt and chopped herbs. It came out rather well – the carrots have a great sweet taste when cooked and the leeks are nice and mild.  I especially like the nutty flavor the farro gives. It’s great for a fall night. 

Recipe:

• 3 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 3/4 cup aborro rice (or combination of rice and farro)
• 1 leek, white and light green part, sliced
• 2 medium carrots, sliced on diagonal 
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• ~2 oz. hard cheese, grated (I used Pecorino)
• Herbed salt to taste (~1/2 teaspoon)
• 1/2 lemon
• 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
• Olive oil

• Bring broth to a simmer
• Heat a little oil in the pan and when hot add the leek and carrots. Cook, stirring frequently, until the leeks are soft, about 3 minutes
• Add the garlic and a little salt, stir
• Add rice and cook, striking to coat, for a few minutes. 
• Add the broth, 1/2 cup at a time, and stir after adding. Wait until most broth is absorbed before adding more
• When the rice is cooked, remove from heat and stir in the parsley, cheese
• Squeeze the lemon over the risotto and stir again

While Bob and I were roaming around Munich and Salzburg, Mom kindly stayed with the pets and spoiled them as they should be spoiled. She also had some fun playing in the dirt and planted some tomatoes.

I have to admit, I am super excited about this tomato. I am also worried as it has rained every day for over a week now, and not the typical Florida afternoon shower. It has rained, and rained all day to the point where mushrooms are growing in the lawn and if you try to walk in the grass, you sink into what feels like a marsh. This is better than the west coast, I know, but I do worry about my baby tomato. I’m not expecting Jersey tomato great (really, is there anything as good as a fresh, true Jersey tomato??? I think not) but I’m hoping for lots of real tomato taste. It has been a while since I’ve had the bliss of a really, really good tomato so if we can get the right conditions for the tomatoes to grow, I would be very, very happy.

I know I haven’t posted in a bit and it hasn’t been for lack of trying. I typed up a little post of the antipasto I made, but when I tried to add pictures, it ended up deleted.  Sigh. So here is the short version.

I wanted to recreate, as best as I could, the antipasto I had at the beer garden in Munich. I figured it wasn’t going to be the same, so I took some liberties and went for the memory of the dish instead of actually trying to remake it. Here is what I ended up with:

Not bad. It came out really, really good.  I tried to find good recipes on-line for a dressing or marinade, but I didn’t come up with anthing that I really thought would work perfectly, so I ended up creating my own.

Recipe:

• 1 eggplant, sliced lengthwise (increase to 2 next time)
• 1 yellow squash, sliced lengthwise
• 1 carrot, sliced lengthwise (increase to 2 next time)
• 1 tomato, sliced
• 3 bell peppers, one of each color, red, yellow, orange (cut down to one next time)
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Dressing:

• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, smashed and chopped
• 2 teaspoons rosemary, chopped
• 1 teaspoon basil, chopped
• 2 teaspoons parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper

The vegetables, I sliced lengthwise, coated in some oil and roasted for about twenty to thirty five minutes at 400 degrees. The carrot took the least amount of time and the peppers the most, so it is just a matter of keeping an eye on everything and taking them out before they turn to char.

Once roasted, I covered the peppers in a bowl with plastic wrap and let them steam so I could peel the skins off. Once I did that, I sliced them down into strips.

It was a nice little dinner and it did remind us of the antipasto in Germany. Definitely not the same, but it had the same feel and made a nice, light dinner. Next time I’m using less bell pepper and more eggplant and carrots. I’m also going to try to find a nice soft cheese to pair with everything. The hard cheese worked, but I think a soft cheese would work better.

And I had to include a cute kitty picture …. just because.

It is not often I forget I married a geek. I don’t generally have any issue with this but some days I do wonder. I came home from work Saturday (yes, Saturday and no, I haven’t changed jobs) to find some … activity in the house.  

 It seems Bob not only got a new gadget (which we refer to as his girlfriend) and he decided to rewrite the lights in the house to be voice operated curtesy of said new girlfriend. Her name is Alexa, by the way.  

 I will almost admit that this gadget is fairly cool. Hooked to the internet it can tell me the weather, news, definitions and, thanks to Bob’s wiring, turn on and off the lights in the house. I will say, however, that if he gets too many more packages I may be tempted to bring home another furry creature. Tempted. But I’m not quite that crazy … Yet.

  Bob did want to take his drone out this weekend (did I mention I married a geek?) and I used the opportunity to practice with the new camera. We decided to get an actual good camera with interchangeable lenses. My cell phone camera works well for most things, but with some trips bring planned and plotted, we decided we wanted something a little better. I did also practice with some food shots. 

 For most if the cooking pictures, I think my cell phone camera works just fine. (Top picture, cell phone, bottom picture, new camera.) But for more distance photos, the new camera is great. I haven’t played with the zoom lens yet, but so far so good.  

 The food, by the way, is yet another NY Times Cooking recipe. I found a number of recipes that look good, are easy to make and don’t include meat or fish. I very much liked this salad and it seemed a perfect summer meal. And it is rather pretty.  

If anyone is interested in helping one of my favorite small businesses, Louise at  Artisan Cheese Company she has applied for a grant from Chase. The first step to this is obtaining 250 Facebook likes. Louise is an incredible business woman who has some fantastic ideas for the grant money that would not only grow her business, but also partner with other local businesses to help Sarasota’s small business community. If you have Facebook and wouldn’t mind helping, Click here – every little bit helps.

Back to my regular routine … if Leia lets me do a little yoga tonight, that is. 

This week I vowed to cook and to experiment. As most people know just getting dinner on the table some days takes more effort than it’s worth. But, we were not getting our box the week, so I decided to make a concerted effort to cook. 

 On Saturday I spent way too much time reading recipes. I can read recipes like other people read magazines, books or social media. I find them relaxing and exciting at the same time. I made the Spinach and Chive shells Sunday and Bob had lunch most of the week with leftovers; Monday I tried a Hot and Sour tofu. 

Tofu has a bad reputation, but I actually like the stuff – not tolerate it, like it. A good tofu has a great texture and enhances the flavors of whatever you are eating it with. I fully admit, most of what I make does not have great tofu in it, but I still like the store bought stuff. The  original recipe calls for fish sauce, so I had to change this a bit. I also found snow peas instead of sugar snap peas, but that was fine. Other than leaving out the fish sauce, and reducing the jalapeño (don’t do that, by the way – the dish needs the heat) I was pretty true to the recipe. It was fast (a plus) and didn’t have leftovers (plus and minus) and was pretty good overall. Not the best tofu I’ve ever made, but a solid dish. It does need the extra element that the fish sauce probably brought, but I’m not nuts enough to try it.  

 Today I tried another new dish. The original recipe called for chickpea flour, but I could not find it in two different grocery stores, so I substituted semolina flour for this one. It makes the dish very different, but since we aren’t watching gluten, it worked ok.  

 So this is essentially a tomato and onion tart. The base is a pancake of semolina flour with egg whites (and water, salt and olive oil). The onions are cooked down with thyme (yes, I was impatient and didn’t let them caramelize enough) and a splash of white wine vinegar. The tomatoes are oven roasted and the whole thing is served with a dollop of creme fresh.  

 I liked this dish, but thought it would be better as an appetizer. Smaller pancakes, maybe goat cheese instead of the creme fresh, and  deeper caramelized onions would help. A few changes and I think we might have a winner. Don’t get me wrong, this was good, just not great.  But for an experiment at the end of a long work day and a long work week, I’ll take it. 

I have a few more experiments for the weekend. Hopefully one will be great instead of just good so I can add it to the make again pile.